Portable blower.



H. E. CLARK.

PORTABLE BLOWER.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. H, I916.

LQMAM. Patented July 24, 1917.

M: &

PORTABLE BLOWER.

Application filed November 11, 1916. Serial No.

7 '0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HoRAon E. CLARK, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Kirkwood, De Kalb county, Georgia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Portable Blowers; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,

clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters or figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of pings from under the spinning frames in cotton mills where such droppings are .diflicult to reach by the aid of a broom.

By the use of my apparatus the droppings are blown from beneath the machines to the sides of the building into a long pile, so that the work of gathering is greatly facilitated, and a'great saving of labor is efiected.

The invention consists in mounting a fan case and the blade driving mechanism on two supporting wheels which constitute the prime driving members of said mechanism, and in providing means for automatically throwing the driving members and mechanism into and out of operative relation.

The invention further consists of the novel construction, combination, formation and arrangement of parts, as will be hereinafter more fully described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a side elevation of a blower embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, and

Fig. 3 is a detail view of the ratchet mechams V 1 designates the supporting wheels which constitute the prime driving members of the blower. These wheels are rotatably mounted on an axle 2 on which is fixed an auxiliary axle 3 which carries an annular fan case 4.

On the auxiliary axle 3, on each side of the case 4, is rotatably mounted a large gear wheel 5, and each gear has a lateral clutch member 6 adapted to be engaged by a clutch Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 24L,- 1911?.

member 7 on the inner end of the wheel hubs. The clutch members preferably consist of ratchets having teeth so arranged that when the wheels are driven forward the ratchet teeth on the hubs will operatively engage with the ratchet teeth of the gears and when said Wheels are moved backward the teeth of the ratchets will not operatively engage. a v

To provide an automatic coupling and uncoupling of the ratchets 6 and 7 when the direction of movement of the apparatus is changed, the wheels 1 are axially movable on the axle 2, and are yieldingly pressed inward toward the gears 5 by means of spiral springs 8 mounted on the ends of the axle Within annular grooves 9 formed in the outer ends of the wheel hubs. are held under tension by being pressed against the bottom of the grooves 9 by means oflnut caps 10 screwed onto the ends of the ax e.

The gears 5 mesh with small pinions 11 fixed on a shaft 12 journaled in a bearing formed on the outer periphery of the case 4.

Fixed on theshaft 12 between the fan case and one of the small pinions 11, is a large gear 13 of substantially the same diameter as the gears 5. This gear 13 meshes with a small pinion 14 formed on one end of a sleeve 15 journaled on the auxiliary axle 3. The sleeve 15 forms the hub of a rotary fan and extends into the fan case through an air intake opening 16 in one of the side walls thereof, and has fixed thereon, within the casing, a plurality of radially disposed fan blades 7.

The fan case has an air blast conduit 18 which communicates with the interior thereof through a peripheral opening'l9 and extends to a point beneath the case where it terminates in two oppositely diverging branch conduits 20.

A valve is provided in the conduit 18 to cutofi the discharge of air from either one of the branch conduits. This valve consists of a plate 21 conforming to the cylindrical contour of the conduit 18 and is carried on a spindle 22 journaled in the conduit. The spindle extends through the wall of the conduit and has a crank arm 23 by means of which the valve may be positioned over either branch conduit, or adjusted to allow the air to pass through both.

A 'socket24 is formed in the fan case to remains an operating handle 25.- This provides These springs a rigid connection between the handle and easing so that the operator ma by raising or lowering the handle, rock tie casing on its axis and move. the front or rear ends of the branch conduits close to the floor.

A brush, 26, is provided for sweeping the floor space between the wheels, said brush being mounted in front of the conduits 20, so that any sweepings that are not carried along by the brush, but swept to the sides, will be blown away by the air blast.

The brush is mounted on the free lower ends of rods 2-7 the upper ends of whicharepivotally connected to the auxiliary axle 3 by means of bearing rings 28. These rings are adapted to fit over the auxiliary axle 3,

one rin being held between the outer end:

of the s eeve. 15 and one of the gears 5, the

' other ring being held between the side of the fan. case and the other gear 5'. The brush; may be raised off the floor by means of a chain 29 connected at one end to the brush head and provided at the other end with a, hook 30 adapted to secure the chain to the crossbar of the operating handle 25 and hold the brush in raised position.

. When the apparatus is pushed forward, the rate-hots 7'on the supporting wheels will, owing to the position of the teeth, engage theratchet 6 on the gears 5' so as to rotate the latter on the auxiliary axle 3. The wheels 5 meshing with pinions 11 rotate the latter together with the gear 13 at a relatively high speed, and the gear 13 drives the smaller gear 14 together with the sleeve l5-,at an increased speed, thereby driving the fanblades at a very high speed and creating a. strong air blast, which may be directed to both or either side of the apparatus throughthe branch conduits.

When the apparatus is pulled backwardthe teeth of the ratehets 7' will ride over the teeth Ofthe ratchets 6, as the springs 8 on the axle will permit: an outwardimovement of the wheels with their-ratchets.

I claim:

1; A; portable-blower, comprising a pair ofsupporting wheels, a rotary fan revoluble around the axis of-the'wheels, and adriving gear. for the .fan driven by the wheels.

2. A portable blower comprising-apair of supporting wheels, a rotatable member mounted between-and' concentric to the axis of: the wheels, fanblades. carried by said of supporting wheels, a rotatable member mounted between and concentric to the axis of the wheels a pinion, on said member, fan blades carried by the latter, a fan. casing-"1nclosing the blades a shatt' j ournaled 1n the fan casin parallel" to-said axis, a gear wheeli.

fixed on t e-shaft and meshing with the pinion, and gearing operated by the wheelsfor rotating said shaft.

4. A ortable blower comprising a'pair of supportmg wheel's, arotatable member mounted between and concentric to the axis of the wheels, a pinion on said member, ra-

dial fan blades carried by the latter, a fun a casing inclosing the blades and having; a lateral opening surrounding the rotate le member, air conduits communicating with the casing, a shaft journaled in the fan cas-- ing, a large gear wheel fixed on said shaft meshing with said inion, a small pinion on each end of sin shaft, and large gear wheels connected with thesupporting wheels meshing with the small pinions.

5. A ortabl'e blower comprising-a pair of supporting wheels, a rotatable member mounted between and concentrieto the-axis of the wheels,.a' pinion-on said" member; r'adial fan blades carried'by thelatter, a fan casing i'nclosing'the blades and having a lat-- eral opening surrounding the rotatable member, air conduits communicating with the casing, a shaft journaled'iii' thefan casing, a large gear wheel fixed onsaid 'sliaft meshing with said pinion, a smallp'inion oneach end of said sha ft, large gear wheels connected-with the supporting whel'smesh ing with the small pinions, and'mechanism to prevent a reverse movement of'said rot'a- 100 table member.

In testimony that I claim the foregoingas my invention, I liavesigned'myname in presence of two'subscribin witnesses."

, HOR'A GBALRIE.

Witnesses:

B. F. MCLAUGHLIN,

P; PARTRIDGE. 

